Tacoma vintner Mike Thiede owns vinifera vines on the warm Wahluke Slope, but his award-winning lineup of wines also includes some berry wines, including this fortified raspberry bottling. His production wine production facility includes a distillery operation, so he uses those spirits to halt the fermentation, which creates a residual sugar of 10% while accounting for the fun and sneaky level of alcohol. The result of this second lot of Raspberry Sensation presents a theme of raspberry, boysenberry and dark chocolate that’s wrapped up in a plush structure and mouthwatering farewell. It garnered a silver medal at the 2016 Capital Food and Wine Festival Wine Competition at St. Martin’s University in Lacey, Wash., and he suggests serving this with fresh-baked brownies or a slice of cheesecake.
Rating: Excellent
Production: 102 cases
Alcohol: 19%
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